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Masons at St. John's Lodge No. 104 in Norwich consider renting space or amalgamating with another Masonic Lodge

Norwich Masons, from St. John's Lodge No. 104, recently gathered for their last meeting at the historic building on the corner of Stover and Main streets. Thanks to fire code issues, the group is looking to rent space nearby or amalgamate with another lodge. (Submitted)

Masons in the village of Norwich are moving out of their longtime home.

There are issues with their building – St. John’s Lodge No. 104 on the northwest corner of Main and Stover streets – that would are too expensive and time-consuming to fix, said immediate past master Sean McCoy.

After an order from Grand Lodge of Ontario, the group’s umbrella organization, to do a fire code inspection at all the provincial lodges, some violations were discovered.

“The repairs that would be required, in terms of cost, for us, was a little high,” McCoy said.

Paul Groeneveld, director of fire and protective services with the Township of Norwich, confirmed that there is an “ongoing enforcement matter” at the Masonic Lodge building. He couldn’t provide further details as the Township can’t speak publicly about enforcement issues.